Is The Internet A Global Phenomenon Essay

While the free essays can give you inspiration for writing, they cannot be used 'as is' because they will not meet your assignment's requirements. If you are in a time crunch, then you need a custom written term paper on your subject (is the internet a global phenomenon )
Here you can hire an independent writer/researcher to custom write you an authentic essay to your specifications that will pass any plagiarism test (e.g. Turnitin). Waste no more time!

Is the Internet really a Global phenomenon?

Since the beginning of time, mankind has been involved in a never-ending quest to learn more about the world in which he lives. Our natural curiosity leads us to question everything and investigate the way in which the world around us works. Human beings also have a natural tendency to want to explore and see things in the world around them which they have never seen before. It is in that sense that the Internet is a perfect extension of human nature. It is a medium which transcends boundaries and makes the world a smaller place – much as the media of printing, radio and television did before it. But is there anything really left to explore? The very problem with having the vast expanse of the knowledge that is the Internet before us, is that even before we experience something first hand, we have already passively experienced it one way or another. For instance, we can marvel at the majesty of the Grand Canyon but we can never look upon as the people of a century ago did. They would have had no idea of what to expect, but our sense of surprise is muted by what we have already seen in pictures and videos.

Nevertheless, the Internet remains a source of great knowledge and possibility, affecting all facets of the wired citizen’s life. Consider the example of the US, who have the greatest proportion of net users in the world:

-Business: The Web is impacting business from the top down. Roughly 92% of CEOs, CFOs and CIOs around the world had Net access in 1998, according to Andersen Consulting. And in Growing up Digital, Don Tapscott believes when the new generation of Internet-using kids enters the workforce, corporations and employers will be forced to become more open, less hierarchical and more collaborative.

-Religion: One New York Bishop put it this way: "If Jesus were walking the earth today I'm convinced He would have an email address." The American Bible Society uses the Web to deliver content found in the Bible. Dozens of Catholic churches use Web sites to garner new recruits.

-Politics: The majority of the USA's top lawmakers receive a daily email tally of how many of their constituents favour or oppose a specific issue. And President Clinton received millions of emails while he was in office.

-Careers: About 10% of jobs are filled through the Internet in the U.S., according to Terri Bonar-Stewart, CEO of a Cincinnati-based consulting company. This summer 82% of college grads will search for careers and employment information online, according to SBC Internet Services; 66% will email their resumes to prospective to employers; 55% will post their resumes online.

-Language: The latest edition of the New Oxford Dictionary of English includes definitions for Web slang including "snail mail," "applet," "geek," "digerati" and "mouse potato."

-Leisure: Researchers at the Yankee Group and elsewhere have found TV viewing decreases in households with Internet access.

But is the internet really the great leveller that everyone is talking about? Annette Hamilton of the ZdNet Anchordesk website has described the internet as:


“a wondrous, global phenomenon that is erasing borders and flattening economic barriers. Just listen to BlackWeb's Frank Coburn, who attests, "The Internet has leveled the playing field for everyone. Race and gender have become irrelevant and we can now obtain the same information and speak to the same people as anyone else."

Is this really the case? At the moment sadly no. Yes, the internet does allow almost anyone to voice their point of view but with the exception that they must own a computer and speak English. Again the example of the United States provides the evidence:

-Two-thirds of all Internet users reside in North America: The increase of cheap computers and unmetered free local calls contributed greatly to the internet boom there in the mid 90’s. This allowed citizens almost 24/7 internet access and indeed some households had second phone lines installed into their homes solely for internet access

-Roughly two-thirds of all Internet servers reside in the U.S. The Internet influencers, Web publishers, are concentrated in America.

-Four out of five Web pages are in English -- the unofficial language of the Net.

All of these factors have contributed to...

The rest of the paper is available free of charge to our registered users. The registration process just couldn't be easier. Log in or register now. It is all free!
You should cite this paper as follows:

MLA Style
. EssayMania.com. Retrieved on 25 May, 2012 from
    <http://essaymania.com/96898/is-the-internet-a-global-phenomenon->

More College Papers

Internet Censorship essay
Internet Censorship For centuries governments have tried to regular materials deemed inappropriate or offensive. The history of western censorship was said to have begun when Socrates was accused "firstly, of denying the gods recognized by the State and introducing new divinities, and secondly o

Internet Censorship essay
During the past decade, our society has become based solely on the ability to move large amounts of information across large distances quickly. Computerization has influenced everyone's life. The natural evolution of computers and this need for ultra-fast communications has caused a global network o

Internet Security essay
Internet Security Many people today are familiar with the Internet and its use. A large number of its users however, are not aware of the security problems they face when using the Internet. Most users feel they are anonymous when on-line, yet in actuality they are not. There are some very easy way